Nottingham Forest defender Harry Toffolo admits it's "bittersweet" being a Premier League player while his former club are struggling in the league below.
The left-back joined the Reds from Huddersfield Town last summer in a double deal worth £10m that included midfielder Lewis O'Brien. The move came shortly after losing the play-off final last May.
After losing two of their key players and manager Carlos Corberan following that defeat, the Terriers have struggled. They currently sit third from bottom in the Championship and face a real battle to stay in the second tier.
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The 27-year-old has realised his dream of being a top flight footballer, and now he hopes both his current and former clubs can avoid relegation this season. “I remember sitting in that Wembley dressing room feeling hard done by but, looking back, realise it was a great achievement," Toffolo told The Sun.
“It’s bittersweet for me being in the Premier League because my mates are back in Huddersfield scraping to stay in the Championship.
“My eldest son Luca is a massive fan of both the Terriers and Lincoln. I took him to watch Huddersfield at Stoke six weeks ago. I was fond of my time there so hope we both can stay up.
“It was hard to program what was going on when I had the opportunity to come here after all the emotions following that final.
“Although I knew Forest’s history and what Steve Cooper has been doing here, it was only after arriving I appreciated what a huge club this is. It was an opportunity I had to take to continue my upward trajectory.”
Toffolo has risen through the leagues during his career and had to adjust to the quality of the Premier League. “You make one mistake and it’s punished," he said.
“But in the Championship you can make two, League One maybe three and League Two maybe four. Everything is so much faster and the quality is what you’d expect from the best league in the world.”
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